Pines Charter hopes to cap historic girls soccer season with a state championship

They knew they potentially had a special team when they played traditional power St. Thomas Aquinas to a scoreless tie in their first match of the season. Pembroke Pines Charter’s girls soccer players “felt good about themselves” after that performance, Coach Carlos Velasquez said.

But interestingly, it was a loss, a 3-2 defeat to Douglas, that “opened up their eyes and gave them confidence. …That game changed their minds about themselves.” After trailing 3-0 in that early-season contest, Pines Charter rallied and nearly pulled even against another traditional powerhouse program. It was arguably the best match they played all season, Velasquez said.

Now, the Jaguars find themselves in the state semifinals, along with St. Thomas, American Heritage-Plantation and American Heritage-Delray – schools who’ve combined to win 24 state championships in girls soccer.

This is the first semifinals for the Jaguars, who previously had never advanced past the regional semifinals in the program’s 12-year history.

“This is an amazing feat for us. We’ve been working so hard,” said Velasquez, in his seventh season as Pines Charter’s coach. “When I first got here, we weren’t as competitive, and we struggled with the team we had. There weren’t a lot of travel-[ball] caliber players on the team. But every year, we just got better and developed.”

Now, a state title is within reach. Should Pines Charter beat Orange Park Fleming Island in the Class 4A semifinals Friday, it would likely face host Melbourne in the final. Melbourne is ranked ninth nationally in the latest National Soccer Coaches Association of America poll.

But the Jaguars aren’t intimidated by the potential matchup.

“I’m very confident,” Velasquez said of competing in the semifinals. “I’ve never been this confident with a team like I am because of how they’ve shown resilience and perseverance against stronger teams.”

Said St. Thomas coach Carlos Giron: "It's great to see the other teams in the county are moving forward. I’m really happy for Pines Charter to be able to do that. Hopefully, they can bring the trophy back too."